Music Business Journal: Modernizing the Hot 100

By

Eduardo Loret de Mola

May 1, 2013

In February of 2013, Billboard and Nielsen made another modification to the “Billboard Hot 100” chart, the official singles chart in the United States. The chart now includes data from YouTube video streaming – an unprecedented event that reflects the growing importance of YouTube on society and the music industry. This is the third time in almost eight years that Billboard has updated the chart formula. It is a positive sign that the iconic magazine is intent on staying abreast of industry changes.

In 2005, Billboard added digital sales data to physical sales and radio airplay. Two years later, in response to the increasing popularity of music streaming, Billboard began incorporating data from streaming media and on-demand services, starting with figures provided by AOL Music and Yahoo! Music. In 2012, additional data from companies such as MOG, Rdio and Rhapsody, previously displayed under the umbrella of Billboard’s “On-Demand Songs” chart, was incorporated into the Hot 100. In January 2013, as online streaming became progressively more important, Billboard also established the “Streaming Songs” chart, which ranks on-demand and online radio streams from services such as Spotify and MySpace.